December 6, 2023 | Ottawa, ON | Health Canada

Health workers are the backbone of Canada’s health care system. Improved health workforce planning and better knowledge and experience sharing are urgently needed to recruit and retain health workers across the country. The federal government, provinces, territories and health system partners recognize the need to build a network that brings together health workers and data experts to learn from each other and build a stronger, healthier workforce that translates into better patient care.

For this reason, Canadian Health Minister Mark Holland welcomed the establishmentHealth Workers Canada. It is a new independent organization created by an interim steering committee with the support of the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI). Established as an independent entity, the organization will work closely with CIHI and all health system stakeholders to improve the collection and sharing of health workforce data and to share solutions and innovative practices. An initial board of directors has been formed to guide the work of this independent organization.

Health Workforce Canada will work with health sector partners to formulate approaches to find solutions to current and future challenges facing health workers:

• Identifying priority sector needs to support perspectives and solutions, working with CIHI and other stakeholders to facilitate access to data and information while respecting Indigenous sovereignty over data materials;
• Providing ideas and advice on effective policies on workforce supply and distribution, health equity planning, workforce health and mental health, and innovations in workforce recruitment and retention;
• Collecting and sharing information on innovative solutions and practices to close key gaps and address implementation challenges.

At the last meeting of Health Ministers, the federal, state and territorial governments committed to taking concrete actions to address the challenges facing health workers. These actions include the creation of this Centre of Excellence and strengthening the exchange and standardisation of information on health workers.

The creation of Health Workforce Canada, commitments at the federal, provincial and territorial levels, and ongoing collaboration will address the current shortage of information on health workforce in Canada. These initiatives are expected to improve the way information is collected, used and shared, while helping health authorities, governments and employers better plan the health workforce across the country.

Health Canada and CIHI have been consulting with partners (including provinces, territories and existing networks) on the important role Health Workforce Canada can play in improving workforce information and workforce planning, including at a workshop on November 23, 2023. As work progresses to implement Health Workforce Canada, the broader health sector network, partners, provinces and territories will contribute to the implementation of the organization’s mission and strategic plan to better support all health care workers in Canada.